Exchanged
by Homely
Summary: XionRiku - She was content with her life, until he came along.- "That stupid, cocky exchange student is going to ruin my year."- But he, in fact, did the exact opposite.
1. Lazy Saturdays

**.:E.x:c.h:a.n:g.e:d:.**

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_Chapter one; **Lazy Saturdays**_

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**- Xion . Riku -**

Private school is hell.

It may sound glamorous to some, what with the idea of being away from parents and such, and living with friends. But the reality of it is, we don't all end up living with our friends. And I'll have you know, living with your school mates is _much _worse than living with your Mom. Trust me, I know.

The prison-- Sorry, 'school' I'm trapped at is Twilight Town Academy, which I was shipped off to the day I turned thirteen. So, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit; Some people, most people actually, love it here. But me? I just don't see the point. I'd asked my mother;

_"Why can't I just go to a normal high school?"_

And she told me that she was moving away with her 'new boyfriend', some rich hotshot from the 'nice' area of town. In my eyes, she was kicking me in the teeth and telling me to get the fuck out of her house. In her eyes, she was doing me a favor. And let me tell you, being sent to Twilight Town Academy was the crapiest favor the woman had ever done to me. Needless to say, I haven't talked to her since.

But thats besides the point.

Life at school was simple. Life in the dorm was simple. I never imagined that things would ever, _ever _get complicated.

Boy, was I wrong.

* * *

Lazy saturdays are my favorite. Always have been, always will be. It's as simple as that. It was that one particular lazy saturday, in which Roxas texted me with his usual not-so-interesting lazy saturday morning text.

_To: Xion Tsuki _

_Hey Xion, meet me and Axel at the mall, usual spot, okay?_

_From: Roxas Hikari_

I couldn't help but laugh. That's Roxas, for you. Love the guy, but both him and Axel never chose any fresh places to hangout. I, for one, dislike hanging around the mall constantly. Unfortunately for me, Axel and Roxas both love it.

_"I only go so I can reel in chicks!" _

Axel claims, even though I'm the only girl he's ever seen hanging around with. But at least we all have fun together, crowded, stinkin' mall or not.

So I went to the mall, _Twilight Place, _(original, I know) and met them at our usual spot, which was just outside of entrance 11. Yeah... It's a pretty huge mall. There, we met up and continued our typical lazy saturday routine.

**Stop one:** Coat check. Along with the winter season, comes the unnecessary need to wear bulky, heavy jackets.

**Stop two:** Food court. I'll be honest; We like to eat.

"Taco Bell." Axel announced, his voice proud.

"New York Fries." I said, my finger pointing to the direction of the greasy resturant.

"Dairy Queen!" Roxas exclaimed excitedly, a goofy grin worn on his face. Axel and I exchanged glances that read 'what the fuck?' Roxas noted this weirded out look we gave him, and pouted. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Axel and I simply laughed, before parting ways, probably leaving Roxas with a very confused expression.

**Stop three:** Legacy Skate Shop, for Roxas. He was really into the whole 'skateboarding scene', and even though it was winter, disabling him from practicing, he still dragged us in the store every time.

"Does this hat look good on me?" Roxas asked, trying on some stupid looking black hat with a flat rim. I laughed at how dorky he looked in it.

"Not really." I giggled, snatching it off his head.

"Hey!" He objected, but I was already checking the price tag; Forty-six dollars.

"Why does this stupid thing cost so much?" I inquired, chucking the hat at Roxas. He bounced off his chest and landed on the ground.

"'Cause it's brand name." Roxas informed matter-of-factly, picking it up.

Axel laughed out loud. "Ooou, brand name!" He teased. "Gotta be hip n' with the latest trends, eh Roxas?"

"Shut up." Roxas laughed, putting the hat back where it came from. "Maybe a different one..."

**Stop four:** Before Dawn Records, for Axel, the music junkie. Him and Roxas were in a band they were practically begging me to join, but I always declined. Me, in a band? Nah.

Axel held up a CD that showed a blonde girl with bangs, pouting 'cutely' for the camera. He laughed at it and held it beside his face, imitating her expression. "How do I look?"

"Like a SUPERMODEL!" Roxas exclaimed, putting on his fake 'gay accent'. I scoffed through a laugh.

"Like a GOOF." I said, grabbing the CD and holding it beside my face. I then pulled off, possibly the ugliest face one will ever witness me make-- I'd say it was a mixture of a grimace and a pout, with my face all scrunched up. Instantly, Roxas and Axel burst out laughing. They just _loved _seeing girls make ugly faces, likely because so many girls try their hardest to NOT look ugly.

"Sorry Axel," Roxas said, "But I think Xion takes the cake for prettiest lady here."

**Stop five: **Patron Clothing, finally, for me! It was an all girls clothes shop, so they hated going in, but I made them anyways.

"Oh hey," Roxas began, picking up a t shirt from a disorganized pile. He held it up to his body. "I dunno guys, is it me?"

"Totally." I nodded, some hints of sarcasm lacing my voice. The shirt was tiny (xxs), black and said "Team Jacob" on it.

"I dunno about that one Roxy," Axel slurred, imitating a girls voice, "Personally, I think pink is more your color." He held up an equally small, hot pink t-shirt decorated with the very not pretty face of Robert Pattinson, Twilight star and world renowned douche bag. The shirt also featured the infamous quote "and so the lion fell in love with the lamb". I laughed out loud instantly.

"Hahaha!"

"Oh em gee!" Roxas shouted unintentionally loud, receiving a dirty look from two twelve year old girls who were also enjoying R-Pattz' face. He ignored them and grabbed the shirt from Axel harshly. "I love it! I am SO buying this." He then tossed it back into the pile. I giggled, and Axel shrugged.

"It's super cute."

**Stop six: **Got Game? Why, it's the arcade! The only place in the mall I actually really loved. Something Axel, Roxas and I all had in common.

Immediately, we all headed over to the four DDR games set up. Obviously, we only used three of them. DDR (thats Dance Dance Revolution) was Roxas' specialty. He kicked all of our asses at it pretty much instantly, because it wasn't long in the game before I fucked up or Axel tripped over his own feet and fell. So for the most part, me and Axel competed to get the SECOND best score.

But today, things were different.

As Axel, Roxas and I turned on the game and turned on the number of players (three), somebody approached us from behind.

"Mind if I join you?" He asked. We all turned to see somebody none of us had ever seen before; He was tall, kind of, and built physically (as in muscles). His hair was odd; Long and layered, and the color was such a shiny light gray, that it was silver. Somehow, the look suited him. I didn't mean to look rude, but I raised an eyebrow at him. Naturally, I wasn't used to somebody we didn't know asking to play with us.

"Um, okay." Axel was the first to reply. "Just hop on and we'll put four players." And I would say that was the first thing I noticed that was actually different about our day. We'd never played with more than three players-- Never. Not like I minded, though. There was no harm in some extra competition.

"Alright, cool." He said, smirking cooly and positioning himself on his machine. I was between Roxas and Axel, the new guy on the other side of Roxas. I saw him in my peripheral vision jumping up and down repeatedly-- A warm up, perhaps? _What kind of person warms up for DDR?_

A really, goddamn good player, apparently. As soon as the game started, this strange, silver haired guy instantly dominated the screen with his perfect score. Roxas was good, really good, but even he made mistakes sometimes.

This guy? Not one.

Halfway through the game, I messed up and gave up. My legs hurt, and I just felt like watching Roxas do it anyways. When I stopped, Axel stopped too. That left Roxas and mystery man, battling to what looked like to the death. On Roxas' side, at least. His face flushed as he struggled to keep up with the guy, who evidently, was kicking his ass. Finally, it ended. And guess who got the highest score?

I'll tell you, for the first time in _ever, _it actually _wasn't _Roxas. It was _him. _Both Axel and I stared, mouthes agape.

"Did he just... Beat Roxas?" Axel dared to ask, caught up in disbelief. Slowly, I nodded.

"I... I think he did."

That guy then energetically jumped off the DDR machine, while Roxas slumped off, exhausted. "Good game." Roxas panted, his face still red from pushing himself too hard.

"Yeah." The guy smiled cockily at him. "You're alright, y'know? With more practice, you could be an expert."

Roxas laughed, though I could tell he was annoyed by this statement. "Thanks. I tried."

"Wow, I thought Roxas _was _an expert." Axel said, as him and I walked over to join them.

"He's good," The guy said. "but he's got a long way to go."

I furrowed my eyebrows at his. _Thats a bit rude. _I thought, but said nothing. I continued to silently listen.

"I guess I'll keep practicing." Roxas said, forcing a smile as he took a swig from his water bottle.

"So where'd you learn to play like that, anyways?" Axel asked curiously, and the guy (who had not yet mentioned his name) grinned slyly, as if he was about to get into a detailed story about his 'amazingness', likely. About five minutes of this guy, and I could already tell that his ego was even higher than his unbeatable DDR scores. But before he could reply, a little alarm went off and he checked his cell phone. It was a light blue, girly looking phone, I noticed.

"Shoot, I can't stay." He said, grabbing his things in a rush. "Maybe I'll run into you all again." And with that, he sped out out of Got Game? and was out of sight in seconds. Roxas, who was still panting from the intense exersize, sighed.

"The fuck?" He asked. "He wasn't even out of breath!"

Axel placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's alright, Roxas. You're still the best of us three."

He smiled slightly. "Yeah, but... That guy--"

"Was a complete jerk." I finished, cutting him off. Roxas and Axel nodded in agreement.

"Totally cocky." Roxas said.

I nodded, picking up my bag so we could move onto a different game. All of a sudden, none of us were in the mood for DDR. I looked at the machine that strange guy had played on, his incredibly high score still plastered on the screen, and rolled my eyes. _Way cocky._

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**Author's note: **Yaay! New story xD. This one was a request from **CoralianBoy. **He requested that I write a Riku/Xion fic, so I resurrected this old idea I had for a Roxas/Naminé fic I had posted a reaaally long time ago, on a different account (it's gone now lol). Together, we came up with this :). I hope you like it!

**Review please, let me know what you think!**


	2. Cursed

**.:E.x:c.h:a.n:g.e:d:.**

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_Chapter two; **Cursed**_

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**- Xion . Riku -**

There are three essential things that any new students entering Twilight Town Academy should know.

**One:** Don't fuck with Principle Xemnas,

**Two: **Don't fuck with the Seniors,

and **Three:** Don't fuck with your roommates.

Why these points are so essential, you might be wondering? Well, naturally, Xemnas, as the Principle/Headmaster of the school has MUCH authority. And trust me, when he's pissed, he is one scary bastard. And it's only common sense to not screw around and get on the bad sides of Seniors, unless you, yourself are one. (Even then, I wouldn't mess with them). But pissing off your roommates might not seem like the worst of the three. I mean, what can they do? One or two other kids from the same grade as you-- Can't be so harmless, right?

Wrong.

And unfortunately, I found this out the hard way.

First day; Grade nine; My two new roommates, Kairi and Naminé.

They were two, pretty looking girls who were both considered a part of the 'popular' crowd. They seemed nice enough at first-- Naminé being shy and sweet, Kairi being friendly and likable. But oh god, one dirty look to the both of them and my first few weeks were _complete hell._

My first mistake was telling Kairi to move out of the bed that I wanted. Second was purposefully dumping coffee on Naminé's sketchbook. And third, the ultimate dumbest, was insulting Kairi's boyfriend, Sora.

_"He's dorky looking and has big ears." _

All of this I did on the very first day. And guess what? I _definitely_ got my just desserts the next morning-- Honey, chewed gum, the stickiest cookie dough on the face of the earth... ALL in my hair. The simple memory of it makes me cringe. And because I couldn't get ANY of it out, I had to cut off my hair. Almost all of it, leaving me with the short bob-ish haircut I still have today. I hated it at first, but it grew on me.

The girls continued to be mean to me and play pranks (well, Kairi was mean to me. Naminé was simply a follower) until the two of them somehow started to like me. They quit their childish acts and actually talked to me, got to know me, and aafter that we just kind of clicked together. To a certain extent, mind you. As if I ever hung-out with them outside of the dorm room-- Nah, they probably wouldn't have been caught dead with the likes of me.

It was this year that they started to actually invite me places with them. I didn't decline, not wanting to be rude and piss them off again. So I hung-out with them at lunch a few times, once at the mall and a couple of times at McDonalds (or 'McDicks', as the cool kids call it). I grew to like them, but naturally Kairi was a bit of a priss.

But I had Axel and Roxas to eat lunch with and do all that crap. Believe me, they are a _lot_ more fun than annoying, cocky assholes like Seifer. I preferred to eat with my best friends and my best friends only-- I had plenty of time to listen to Kairi's gossip in the dorm.

And so the three of us ate lunch together every day, at a slightly more isolated table in the corner of the cafeteria. We liked the privacy, so no annoying people could intrude on our conversations.

"That lunch lady makes the nastiest food in the world." Roxas stated, carelessly dropping his tray, sliding into his usual spot beside me at our table. Axel always sat across, facing the two of us, but he hadn't yet joined us. I giggled at the sloppy looking gunk on my blond friend's tray, and poked it with his fork.

"Gross." I mused.

"Yummy." Roxas muttered sarcastically, looking down at it with a grim expression. At that moment, as I raised my head, the first thing I noticed was Axel walking through the cafeteria. I was expecting him to be alone, like he usually was, but no-- Behind him, following closely, was somebody else.

"Who is--" I began, but stopped myself as I got a good look at him. I knew who it was.

"Hey, it's that guy." Roxas said, stating the obvious.

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion-- What was _he _doing here, and what the hell was he doing with Axel?

"Hey guys," Axel said, swiftly slipping into his place, "remember him?" He pointed his thumb at none other than that silver haired, cocky looking dude from the arcade.

"You're that guy that beat me." Roxas said, nodding to him. I cringed at Roxas' friendliness.

"Yeah, the name's Riku." He said slyly. _Too _slyly. He didn't hesitate to invite himself to sit, taking the empty spot beside Axel. I had to suppress the urge to groan. _Here he is again, disrupting our daily routines. _I thought, allowing myself to release that groan, but only inwardly. _Riku, _he said his name was. _Kinda girly, isn't it?_

"This is Roxas," Axel said, pointing one of those long fingers of his, "and Xion."

Riku nodded to both of us. I just had to grimace. I HAD to. But I didn't. _Now I know how recovering alcoholics in The Beer Store feel. _I didn't exactly know why, but I instantly didn't like this guy. I didn't like him when I saw him in Got Game? and I didn't like him now, as he sat at our table, making himself completely at home. There was just something about that air he gave off-- How he made everything he did look _cool, _and he knew it. That conceited vibe was really not a good one.

I felt annoyed. I wanted him to leave, so I could have my best friends to myself again. But no, he didn't go. Him, Roxas and Axel seemed to be getting along pretty well-- The only one who didn't speak was, of course, me. And suddenly, I felt out of place.

"Riku here is that new exchange student Xemnas mentioned in the announcements friday." Axel introduced.

"Wow, really?" Roxas asked, sounding impressed. "Where'd you come from?"

Riku grinned, almost politely. I think he was just enjoying the attention. "Destiny Islands. Ever been?" Both Roxas and Axel shook their heads 'no'. I didn't bother replying. "Oh yeah? It's _really _nice there, lots of beaches." He bragged.

"Sounds pretty cool." Axel commented. "Gotta love them beaches, lots of chicks in bikinis. We don't really get that here, since we're stuck in the dead center of the city." He popped a grape in his mouth. "Especially since it's winter."

"Hmm, well I'm enjoying the break." Riku said, then smirked. "At least from the hot. Though it's _freezing _here. Like, way hotter than back in DI." I frowned at this statement. _He calls it 'DI'? Pfft. _

"It's crappy, I agree." Roxas said, nodding. "But Destiny Islands sounds like a great place for a vacation."

"Oh it is. Even better living there."

And thats about where I stopped listening. The conversation could easily have bored me to tears; as if I want to listen to some 'beach dude' brag about how 'awesome' his hometown is. I decided that back in Destiny Islands, Riku probably surfboarded, ate hot-dogs and hit on slutty girls in skimpy bathing suits. I mentally rolled my eyes, thinking _what a tool._

"Hey Xion, you okay?" Roxas asked after a while, noting how quiet I was being. I looked at him, and forced a tiny smile, nodding.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"You haven't really been talking." Axel pointed out, as if I didn't realize that already.

"You are pretty quiet." Riku said, smiling one aggravating, toothy smile at me. And again, I had to resist that urge to frown. _Who the hell is he to tell me I'm quiet? He doesn't even know me!_

"Haha, just not feeling too well." I lied, looking that Riku character straight in those strange, aquamarine eyes of his. They such a greeny-blue, they were almost turquoise. I had to admit, they were mesmerizing.

"Uh oh, you're not gonna puke, are you?" Axel asked, cautiously sliding back a bit in his seat. I chuckled and shook my head.

"No, Axel."

"Good!" The redhead exclaimed, sighing in relief. "You know how I hate puke..."

"Everyone hates puke." Roxas informed, laughing.

"Everyone hates puk_ing _too." Said Riku, chuckling wholeheartedly.

"I agree with you there, bud." Axel nodded. I grew more and more irritated the more Riku spoke. I hated this feeling I had-- Feeling out of place with the only people I was ever truly, truly comfortable around. So, I slung my backpack over my shoulder and picked up my tray, standing up while doing so.

"Um, I gotta go tell Naminé something." I said, a blatant lie, but none of them realized that. Roxas' ears perked up when I said this, and he looked to me.

"Naminé?" He asked hopefully, and I nodded.

"Yeah." I knew that Roxas had a crush on Naminé. He had ever since grade nine, but he was too damn shy to even talk to her. Poor guy. I promised him that someday, I would invite her to come hangout with the two of us. I smirked playfully at him. "Want me to mention you?"

"Maaybe..." He sang, and I laughed.

"Of course I will. I always do."

He grinned brightly at me. "Thanks, Xion."

"No problem." I said, then waved to Axel (and I guess it could be taken as a wave to Riku as well). "See you later."

"Peace out." Axel said, giving me the 'peace sign'. I rolled my eyes at him jokingly.

"Nice meeting you, officially." Riku said, beaming. It took me off guard.

"Oh, er, you too." I replied awkwardly, giving him a tiny simper. I then continued on my way, heading over to the dreaded 'popular' table. I decided that sitting with them, was better than sitting with him. _Way _better.

* * *

My fourth period class was Drama, my personal favorite, along with art. Though I was quiet, I was certainly not shy. My lack of stage-fright was an advantage in the theater, or in this case, the drama room.

I was looking forward to working with my group on the skit we'd written. It was fun, and I always felt confident even though Roxas nor Axel were there. But as I entered the room, one stupid looking grin plastered on my face, there was somebody else standing where I was supposed to be. And do I even have to tell you who it was?

Of course it was Riku. I grimaced-- And I grimaced hard, thinking _what the fuck is he doing here? _

First DDR, then lunch, and now Drama.

By the time I'd walked over and Riku had noticed my presence, smiling charmingly at me, I think I realized:

_I'm cursed._

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**Author's note: **Hey everyone! Thanks so much for the reviews XD I got a lot more than I'd expected! I enjoy writing this story. (: I know things are moving a little slow at the moment, but it'll pick up. Bare with me!

**And please review! :D**


	3. Misfortune

**.:E.x:c.h:a.n:g.e:d:.**

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_Chapter three; __misfortune_

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**- Xion . Riku -**

Let me tell you about Riku's smile.

It's an evil, devilish grin covered in smugness, only visable to me-- For Riku's smile is just completely _masked _by how 'charmingly cute' he is.

I, however, do not fall for such trickery.

As I approached Riku, who for whatever reason was standing in _my _drama group, I saw right through that supposed 'charming' smirk of his, my eyes boring into his very cocky, aggravating soul.

"Hey again, Xion." He grinned, waving slightly, as if expecting a pleasant reply from me. Instead, I simply turned away from him, meeting the eyes of Tidus, another boy in my group.

"Hey Tidus." I said, stepping past my smug 'friend' and closer to the blond. I intentionally flashed a cold look over my shoulder to a rejected looking Riku, who's turquoise eyes currently showed confusion. I mentally laughed, imagining what was going through his mind.

_"She rejected me? ME? The greatest thing EVER?"_

Pfft.

"What's up, Xion?" Tidus inquired, snapping me out of my momentary reverie. I then smiled at him, and proceeded to lightly grab his arm, pulling him away from Riku's ear distance.

"So," I began, meeting his curious orbs. "what's with the new guy?" We both took a peek at the silver haired teen, who now awkwardly stood chatting with Olette and Seifer.

"Oh, you mean Riku?"

I nodded.

"Oh, yeah, Ms. Lockhart said he's new and doesn't have a group." Tidus explained. "So I volunteered to let him in ours."

I groaned inwardly, thinking _damn it Tidus. _"Oh, I uh, see." I said awkwardly.

"Yep! He's a pretty cool guy. Can you believe he's from Destiny Islands?"

"Yeah, I heard..." I muttered, before aimlessly wandering back over to the group, Tidus following, ranting to me about how 'cool' Riku is. I nodded, pretending I was listening, but I wasn't.

Ms. Lockhart, our drama teacher, was a young, beautiful woman who couldn't have been any older than twenty-five. All the d-bags of the class, such as Seifer and (I assumed) Riku swooned over her, and the jealous types like Selphie and Yuffie envied her intensely. I, on the other hand, simply admired her. She was nice, helpful and surprisingly un-shallow.

The class began, in which Ms. Lockhart (or Tifa, as she wanted us to call her; _"I'm far too young to be called 'Ms. Lockhart"_) went to the front of the room, and I expected her to simply tell us what to do, and then go do her own thing. But today...

"Good day, class." She said. Seifer (who, by the way, was some smug jock from the 'popular' clique) 'whooted', only receiving a glare from the teacher. "Anyways," Tifa continued, "today, we have a new student with us." She smiled and formally gestured towards Riku, who smirked and waved to everyone. "Come on up!"

"Right." Riku nodded, following her orders and proceeding to the front of the room. He turned to face the class, his smile pleasantly _sickening._

"Class, this is Riku." Tifa introduced. "He's the new exchange student Principle Xemnas had mentioned on the announcements. He's from Destiny Islands." I heard many whispers of awe fill the room, and rolled my eyes. What was so great about _Destiny Islands _anyways? Seriously... "So, tell us about yourself, Riku!" Tifa exclaimed. "Its tradition in this class for all students to introduce themselves."

That was true; I remembered on the very first day of Drama class, we'd all had to introduce ourselves in a big circle.

I had said: _"Um, my name is Xion... I like... Drama?"_

Seifer had said: _"Name's Seifer. I like blitzball and women. I ain't gay so don't come on to me unless you want your face smashed in, fo real!"_

Tidus has said: _"I'm Tidus, I like blitzball and um... Blitzball!"_

And now, Riku was saying: "Hi everyone, I'm Riku." -- _yes, we know _-- "I'm from Destiny Islands," -- _we know that too _-- "I like the beach," -- _that one's a given _-- "and my passions are surfboarding," -- _hello cliché _-- "blitzball" -- _join the club _-- "and I write poetry and songs for my band." _Dumb-- Wait, what?_

'Poetry and writing songs for my band'? What is this, _Twilight Town Idol? _

Though I had to admit, as he said those words, my head snapped towards him. This guy, doing something down to earth? I decided; _Probably not. I bet he just writes about surfboarding and beaches, nothing deep._

Once Tifa dismissed everyone to get to work, many students crowded around Riku, bombarding him with various questions about himself. I merely scoffed and walked off, seating myself alone at on the bench.

And there I sat, arms crossed over my chest, an annoyed pout on my face, when he approached.

I guess I had been sitting there for several minutes, because I didn't even realize that the crowd of Riku lovers had dispersed, and my group was waiting for me.

"Xion?" Riku's voice sounded, dragging me out of my infuriated peace. I was in a bad mood, yes, but at least I wasn't being bothered...

I looked up and met his eyes, trying not too grimace. "What is it?" I asked, clueless, and he laughed.

"The group is waiting for you."

I glanced passed his shoulder, only to see the rest of my group staring at me impatiently. "Oops..." I peeped, my cheeks flushing from the embarrassment. Without another word, I stood up and walked past Riku, straight towards Tidus, Seifer and Olette.

"What are you doing, Xion?" Seifer implored, one eyebrow cocked in irritation. "We can't just rehearse without you, y'know."

"Sorry." I apologized, though I didn't really mean it. For the second time that day, I felt out of place where I normally fit in. The thought made my skin crawl-- _How many more times is this going to happen?_

* * *

Drama class, simply put, was a complete drag. I'd been pissed off the whole time, spaced out in my own little world, and got yelled at by Seifer every time I wasn't paying attention (which was the entire time, so-- Well, you can do the math).

Riku tried to talk to me various times. I ignored him, for the most part, by only responses being cold glares or silent nods. I guess he didn't take the hint that I didn't like him (and wanted nothing to do with him), because as I exited the Drama room, he approached me.

"Hey Xion," He began, jogging to catch up with my fast paced walk. "having a bad day?" That voice of his was laced with a certain _niceness _that made me cringe. It wasn't that normal nice tone of voice one would here from say, a guy like Roxas... No, this was Riku nice. This was fake nice.

"What's it to you?" I snapped, hardly realizing how bitchy the inquiry was. I thought about it for a split second-- And realized that I didn't care.

"Whoa, okay..." He emphasized. "I was just wondering, jeez..."

"Whatever." I purposefully picked up my pace (greatly) to get away from him, but he continued his pursuit.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think that you don't like me."

At this statement, I couldn't help but laugh. "Oh really."

He nodded. "Yeah. But I thought about it just then, and I realized that you're probably just an overall bitch in general."

I simply laughed and shook my head, until it clicked-- _Wait, WHAT?_

I jumped in front of him and turned, stopping him in his tracks. That annoying, snobbish grin stayed plastered on his face as I did so. "You did _not _just call me a bitch." I warned, raising a wary finger. Most people (well, Roxas and Axel) would back off right away at this behavior of mine. Angry Xion = Ender of Lives. ESPECIALLY when you're the one who's angered me.

"Actually..." Riku said, trailing off for a moment. "Hmm, you know what? I think I just did."

And at that moment, my jaw literally _dropped. _"Whoa whoa whoa, hold on there buddy." I said, now straight up pissed off. "Sorry but, I just checked my files-- Looks like you don't know me. Hmm, so, I was just wondering-- How the fuck can you call me a bitch when you know _nothing _about me?"

One small, silver-ish eyebrow raised in a sarcastic way, making me want to punch him in the face even more. Which is funny, because I already had the uncontrollable urge to do so. Anyways, he said: "You're a little defensive, aren't you?"

"Huh?"

He chuckled with surprising good nature. "I was only joking, you know."

"What?" My face fell. "Seriously?"

He nodded, expression completely earnest. "I didn't actually mean it. Though by the way you're acting, I may have to take that back."

And suddenly, I felt completely, utterly chagrined. "Um..." I awkwardly rubbed the back of my head. "My bad."

Riku laughed again. "It's alright. Hey, I would have gotten pissed off too, if some complete stranger was calling me names for no reason."

I laughed uneasily. "Right..."

"Okay well, I'll see you later, Xion." He flashed me one last grin, before darting down the hall, likely to his next class. I stood there alone for a moment, letting what had just happened sink in-- _Xion, you just made a _complete_ ass out of yourself._

I exhaled, annoyed with my short tempered behavior, though relieved that Riku didn't actually mean what he'd said. If he did mean it, well... He would have regretted it.

So, I was a bit oversensitive-- So what? That guy pissed me off. And even though he was showing _some _sign of genuine pleasantness, the thought of him still made me angry; And the nerve of the guy! Who the hell is he to crack 'jokes' like that, pissing me off? And jesus christ, he's so fucking... You know what, never mind. I perceived then, as I continued my way to my next class, that I was getting too worked up over this tool.

_Calm down, Xion. He's not worth the stress._

I sighed, annoyed with all the misfortune this day was bringing. I hoped that perhaps, in the next period things would start looking up.

* * *

**Author's note: **Hey everyone, thanks so much for the reviews! Sorry for the kinda late update DX

**Review please!**


	4. The Third Wheel

**.:E.x:c.h:a.n:g.e:d:.**

* * *

_Chapter four; **The Third Wheel**_

* * *

**- Xion . Riku -**

My class schedule consisted of five periods; Math (ugh), English, Lunch, Drama, and finally Art. My semester was pretty easy, excluding math, which I naturally hated with the deepest of passions. To make it even worse, I was forced to wake up every morning to it...

Anyways.

As I'd explained, Drama class was a load of crap. Finally, when it ended, I ran into some trouble in the hall-- Instantly souring my mood as I made my way to Art class, already five minutes late. An irritated grimace was worn on my face as I drew close to my class, and when I entered?

I don't even wanna say it. I don't even wanna _think _about it!

All I can say, is that I truly, one hundred percent, am legitimately CURSED.

I just wanted to scream, at the very high point of my lungs, _GET OUT OF MY LIFE!_

But I didn't.

Instead, I slowly walked into the room, bad posture displaying my mood, and slumped into _my _chair at _my _table with _my _friends. Plus our 'special guest of honor', Riku.

"Hey guys." I said with an unenthusiastic dry tone of voice. Roxas and Axel both noticed this, and exchanged glances.

"Er, what's up, Xion?" Roxas inquired, unsure if he really wanted to hear my answer. I simply shook my head, before resting it to the table beneath me. _Today, in Art, only my second favorite class of the day (no big), I will sleep._

Don't get me wrong, I _love _sleeping. But the thing is... I love Art even more. We were working on these insanely fun little sculptures, and mine was so close to being finished... But I was stressed out, and sick of seeing that damned Riku everywhere I went. So, I decided that I would just let myself rest, and ultimately calm down. _Maybe he won't be that annoying..._

_... Pfft, who am I kidding. The guy is an instant thorn in the butt..._

I could hear Riku enjoying conversation with my best friends, so I put in my headphones and blasted my music. I didn't care if it was too loud, and would bother any of them-- In fact, I not-so-secretly hoped that Riku was one of those people who hate it when others play their music obnoxiously temp.

Heh.

* * *

Every monday was Roxas' day to help me study for Math. You see, I am incredibly, incredibly horrible at that subject-- Like, I look at the page, and draw an instant blank. So, since we're in the same class (and he is ridiculously good at it), he comes to my room and he attempts at teaching me in more suitable way than the teachers. I'm kind of a hands-on learner, whereas our teacher writes a lesson on the chalk board and then assigns homework (he's an ass).

Also, Roxas enjoyed coming over, not only for the reason he enjoys teaching his good pal Xion, but he gets to sit in the same room that his beloved Namine lives in. It's hilarious, everytime she so much as walks by, his faces lights up the brightest shade of red...

I waited for Roxas at his locker, where we always met up. Part of me was thinking _I bet Riku is gonna be there _but a stronger part of me was trusting Roxas. He was a smart kid, he had to have noticed my dislike towards our new exchange student...

And thankfully, when the blond rolled up, he was all by himself. I exhaled in relief, and waved to him.

"Hey, you're here early." He commented, as he punched in his combination, opening the locker.

"Yeah, I didn't stop and talk to anyone after Art." I told him, casually leaning against the locker beside his. He loaded up his backpack with what he needed (I noticed a water bottle, math textbook and binder) and we were on our way, heading towards the Girls Dorm. Guys weren't allowed in anytime after eight o'clock, and viceversa. I usually went and chilled at Axel's with Roxas until like, midnight, though, on weekends. Yeah, we're rebs.

I used my key card to get into my room, and was shocked to see that Namine was actually there. Usually, her and Kairi were out after school. She was laying on her stomach, her face buried in her pillow, and I could hear faint sobs. I sent Roxas a 'wtf?' look, but he was too busy blushing to catch it.

"Um, Namine?" I asked, throwing my backpack on the floor and kicking off my shoes.

Her head snapped up, and my eyes widened with shock at the sight of her big, red puffy orbs and tear stained cheeks. "X-Xion, it's you." She stammered. As soon as she noticed another pressense in the room, she instantly jumped up to her feet, wiping her tears away with the sleeve of her shirt.

"You okay?" I queried, a little bit concerned. Namine, after all, _was _the nice one, unlike Kairi...

"S-Sorry, I didn't know you were having someone over..." She awkwardly glanced to Roxas.

"Namine, you know I have Roxas over every monday to help me study math."

"Oh, right..." She laughed nervously. "I uh guess I forgot... Sorry."

"Nah, it's all good." I flopped on my bed, and lay for a moment, before peeking up to see Namine standing in the same position. I sighed in (slight) annoyance, before sitting up straight. "What's wrong?"

"N-N-Nothing." She stammered, hanging her head low shamefully.

"Doesn't look like nothing to me." I stated, bringing myself to my feet. When she didn't answer, I simply shrugged my shoulders. "Alright, you wanna keep to yourself. I understand. We'll try and be quiet."

"N-No, that's okay." She trailed off for a moment, finally raising her head, before meeting my eyes. "Xion, can I help you study too?"

I raised my eyebrows, surprised. "You wanna help me study for Math?" I asked, uncertain if my ears were being truthful. She nodded shyly. "Well, okay, I guess... Just have a seat on my bed, that's where we always sit."

She obeyed, sitting cross legged on my bed, as I took the same position near her. I looked to Roxas, who awkwardly stood off to the side, and I gestured for him to come over. Nervously, he approached, and sat down where he usually did. Now, the three of us were in a triangular formation, all sitting with our legs crossed, math books in the middle.

Minutes dragged by as I 'listened' to Roxas' lectures. I could tell that Namine's being there was making him feel uneasy, but I also knew that he didn't want her to leave. He'd had the most adorable crush on her for what seemed like forever, and this was probably the closest they'd ever really got.

"Ugh, I hate math so much..." I complained, about half an hour in.

"I know you do." Roxas said, growing a bit more comfortable with Namine there. "But if you wanna pass, you better pay attention."

"Yeah, yeah..." I was trying to pay attention. Really, I was. And usually I could, but today... My mind was just a bit elsewhere. And to be perfectly honest (and I have no idea why) but I kept on thinking about that stupid Riku and what he'd said to me earlier. He called me a _bitch... _And then pointed out that he was 'just kidding'. And I don't think he was lying, either. Something about those turquoise eyes of his had told me that he was speaking genuinely, even if he was an obviously fake, plastic person. And by plastic, I mean 'perfect', like, I dunno... He's good at everything, everyone likes him... You get the idea. Anyways.

"To be honest," Namine began, nervously fidgeting with her fingers and ending my trail of thought, "I'm not all that good at math either." She looked to Roxas. "But the way you explain it makes sense to me..."

I smirked, amused as his face went as red as a beet, and he smiled to her. "T-Thanks." He fumbled. "Glad I'm helping..."

The three of us continued to go through math reviews, and yes, I remained inattentive (but pretended I was listening). The only thing in the room I actually could focus on was the shocking chemistry I was noticing between my two blond friends... To be honest, I kinda felt like a third wheel... But perhaps, Roxas' wishes were finally coming true?

Hmm, I wonder if that's gonna happen to me anytime soon...

* * *

**Author's note: **Hey everyone, thanks so much for the lovely reviews! :) And so sorry for the late update, I was having writers block D:.

**Review pleeeease!!**


	5. Not So Good Fortune

**.:E.x:c.h:a.n:g.e:d:.**

* * *

_Chapter five; **Not So Good Fortune**_

_**

* * *

**_

**- Xion . Riku -**_**  
**_

I like to think of myself as an optimist.

No, I don't jump around all happy-go-lucky while saying hello to every person on the street, nor do I have this whole 'the suns always shining somewhere' attitude going on. I, rather, tend to try to look at things on the, er, bright side or life. And by that I mean, I try to think that things can always be worse. That whatever I'm going through isn't so bad, and just can't last forever...

I lay in bed that night thinking about this. Thinking about... Riku.

All of those questions just wouldn't quit repeating in my mind. Like What if he never leaves? and What if he replaces me as Roxas and Axel's friend?

I knew it was dumb to doubt my friends loyalty, but I also knew that Riku was a very charismatic guy. And if he wanted to be BFF with Roxas and Axel, well, I'm very sure he could think of something.

I was laying awake, eyes glued to the white celling above me, when I heard a strange noise. I shrugged it off-- Probably just Kairi's snoring or something.

But I heard it again.

It was like clack, clack, clack coming from somewhere outside of the room. I frowned as I sat up straight in my bed. I looked to the window, and only saw the branches of trees. Kairi and Naminé were both sound asleep as usual, whereas sleep just seemed to avoid me. It was already midnight, and I hadn't slept a wink.

Clack, clack, clack.

Okay, so, it was starting to piss me off. I was already grumpy enough from not being able to sleep, not to mention the other annoyances in my life. I decided that I didn't need another damn annoyance keeping me up at night. So, I crawled out of bed and walked towards the window. I took a peek out and the first thing I noticed was the sky-- Dark, clear and beautiful, and completely mapped with an unpredictable pattern of stars. I stared in awe for only a moment, before my eyes fell upon the base of the tree that grew outside of the window.

And what did I see?

It was him.

I did not hesitate to open the window.

"What the fuck are you doing?" I harshly whispered, loud enough for him to hear. He startled to attention and looked up, shock on his expression.

"Xion?" He asked in disbelief.

I simply scoffed and rolled my eyes. "I asked first."

Much to my surprise, Riku chuckled. "Fair enough. You really wanna know?"

I shrugged. "Not really. To be honest, I'd actually just like you to stop making noise." I smirked playfully and leaned on the rim of the window. "But humor me. Why are you sneaking around campus after midnight?"

"Well, you'll probably think its stupid, but I was sneaking out to meet someone."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What kind of 'someone'?"

He glared. "Not that kind of someone. I'm going to meet my sister, she has something for me."

"Sounds suspicious." I laughed, but as if I even cared what he was really up to.

Suddenly, his expression completely changed. "You're not gonna tell on me, are you?"

Now come on, thats just not fair. Not fucking fair. Why? Because now I can't stop laughing! And it was true. I burst out laughing. How couldn't I? The way his warm, cheesy smile melted into a look of complete and utter horror, mouth agape... Such a stupid expression had never been seen by the eye of (wo)man.

Until then.

I lol'd on end and I could practically hear Riku's eyebrow raising sardonically. I managed to calm down my little fit of giggles as he proceeded to wait.

"Sorry." I apologized, slightly embarrassed. "Your expression; Priceless."

He chuckled wholeheartedly. "Well thanks, I guess." Suddenly, a something very faint ruffled and he snapped his head to the side, holding that position with yet another one of his dumb faces. This one was definitely his 'heated out' face.

"Don't be such a sketchbag." I scolded (semi) jokingly. "No ones out to catch you aimlessly wandering around. Except for me, of course."

He grinned. "I guess you're right, but still..." He drifted off into his thoughts for a moment, before looking at me one last time. "Alright, well looks like the coast is clear."

"Is that why you were standing under that tree?"

He nodded. "Yep. Anyways I gotta jet! See you tomorrow, Xion." He flashed me one last sickening grin before speeding off to god knows where, to do god knows what. To be honest, I never really did tell if he was serious about meeting his sister...

As I watched him rush away, looking as dumb as ever, I merely scoffed. "Don't count on it."

* * *

"This day brings good fortune."

With one eyebrow raised, I read aloud the words on the small slip of paper that was hiding inside of my fortune cookie. I merely scoffed, crumpling it up and carelessly chucking it on the already littered cafeteria floor. I stared at it for a moment, before I noticed a hand inching towards it. Naturally, my head snapped straight to the person who was creeping on my fortune. And whaddya know? It was Riku.

"Heya." He grinned, as he rose himself to his feet, the crinkled fortune in his hand.

I scowled hard. "Hey, thats my fortune!"

He simply shrugged. "Well, I saw you throw it on the ground so I assumed you didn't want it anymore." Before I could object any further, he opened it up and read it. "Hmm, good fortune, eh?"

"Whatever." I scoffed. "As if it really means anything."

"You think so?" He casually slid over to the spot right across from me at the table. "I, for one, kinda believe in this stuff. Maybe not cheap little chinese fortune cookies like this, but if the shit's legit then I definitely believe it."

I gave him a look that read 'and I care because...?' and he laughed.

"Sorry, I tend to say random stuff sometimes."

"I've noticed."

At that moment, both Roxas and Axel joined us, sitting in their usual spots. I couldn't help but notice the semi delicious looking burger on Axel's tray, and the nasty looking goop on Roxas'.

"What's up with this?" I inquired, gesturing towards Axel's plate. He looked at his food, then to me, and smirked.

"Magic."

"Its not fucking fair." Roxas pouted. "The cafeteria ladies LOVE him. Mary-Jane made that burger especially for him, and even thought I was right with him, she still gave me whatever this barf is!"

I couldn't help but laugh. "Aww, poor Roxas."

"You should complain." Riku randomly blurted out, and all heads snapped to him.

"What?" Roxas asked.

"You should complain." The DI boy repeated. "You know, write up a complaint saying that if Axel gets good food, then you should get good food too. In fact, everyone should get good food."

"Uhhh..." Axel awkwardly cleared his throat. "Well, you know I'm sure Roxas would do that, but... Lets just say Principle Xemnas doesn't exactly appreciate criticism to his school."

Riku cocked his head to the side curiously. "What do you mean?"

"What he means is," I began, "the last time a student complained about the cafeteria food he got detention everyday for a month, no joke."

"Well thats a bit silly." Riku commented.

"Amen to that." Said Roxas. "I wish that I could complain, really, I do... But I also don't wanna get in shit with 'the man upstairs', sooo..."

Roxas and I sighed longingly. "Oh, what it would be like to eat good food at lunch..." Roxas mused, head up in the clouds.

"If they served stuff that was good," I said, "I might actually eat from the caf instead of simply living off chips during the day."

Riku's aquamarine eyes flashed to mine. "You only eat a bag of chips for lunch?"

I nodded. "Yep. Well, sometimes two, depends on how hungry I am. Today during second I dipped and got some Bacon and Gravy ones... Mmmmm they were good." And as I finished that sentence, all of a sudden I realized something... Actual conversation with Riku? I'd say it was the first civil one we'd ever shared, and it was about me eating chips. Lovely.

"But Xion," Riku said, his expression astonished, "that's so unhealthy!"

I shrugged. "So?"

"You don't care?"

I shook my head. "Nope. As long as it tastes good and moderately fills my stomach, I'm all for it."

He appeared to be pondering this statement, his eyes glued to the table and his thumb resting just on the edge of his lip. Little did he know, I was judging him the whole time...

* * *

In drama, leisurely sat on the grayish (and rather uncomfortable, might I add) carpet with my thoughts wandering intensely. I was supposed to be paying attention to the presentation that Selphie was putting on-- Our assignment was to do a report on a famous actor/actress and present it to the class, which was exactly what Selphie was trying to do. Normally I would pay attention, but well... It was Selphie talking, not to mention she chose Miley Cyrus as her actress.

I couldn't help but notice that Riku wasn't in class. He definitely wasn't the type to skip...

"Xion?" Ms. Lockhart called out my name, snapping me out of my reverie.

"Yeah?"

"Its your turn, please."

"Oh, right." I said dumbly, picking myself up. I passed Selphie, taking her previous position at the front of the room. I could hear all of her friends ogling over her-- Like "oh my god, Selphie, that was amazing!" and "holy cow, if I don't see The Last Song RIGHT NOW I am going to DIE!". Pfft...

Anyways, I already had my papers ready and everything.

"Everybody settle down." Tifa instructed. When they didn't listen, I could tell she was gonna get pissed. "PEOPLE!" She screeched, scaring the living daylights out of everybody except me. "Thank you. Xion?"

I nodded, cleared my throat, just as I was about to start speaking...

Guess who burst into the room?

"Everybody, I have great news!"

* * *

**Author's note: **Hey everyone! First off let me say that I'm so sorry I haven't been updating, even though you all leave such lovely reviews :p it's just I've had a lot going on in my life lately. But I'm back on track!

**Please review!!!**


	6. Officially Official

**.:E.x:c.h:a.n:g.e:d:.**

* * *

_Chapter seven; **Officially Official**_

_**

* * *

**_

**- Xion . Riku -**_**  
**_

The layout of the room reminded me much of an assembly; I was beginning to wonder if this was some kind of role-play, and Riku was the lead. I always thought that it was a teachers job to deliver important news around the school, or at least the members of student council, but no. Apparently, Riku counted too.

"I talked to Principle Xemnas during my absence." He stated, flattening down his silky hair which was previously growing frizzy. The center of attention moved himself to the center of the room so there was a circle of attentive students surrounding him. "I inquired to him about the menu being served at the cafeteria..."

Whispers were sent throughout the crowd, kids talking amongst themselves. Everybody had heard the story; Xemnas doesn't like his cafeteria food being questioned.

"I had heard some nasty stories about the Principle, but honestly? He's not so bad!"

Everybody fell silent, staring at Riku as if he had a watermelon for a head. I couldn't help but smirk- It was nice to see people finally seeing him for the tard he truly is. But sadly, it didn't last for long.

"He even agreed to _completely _revise the cafeteria menu."

No body knew what to say. Not even I, who wasn't even sure if I believed him or not.

When Riku saw the speechless crowd, he continued; "_Real _chicken burgers, _fresh _salad, and even a selection of vegetarian dishes are all part of what Xemnas promised me he'd add, and it'll all be starting within the next week."

And now was the time to praise.

The class cheered exuberantly; Some people even stood up and gave Riku a congratulatory pat on the back. It wasn't long before everyone was swarming him with questions and such, whereas I simply sat there.

I'll be honest, time to time I do enjoy being in the spotlight. There are those odd days in drama where we present an act or do what I was scheduled to do today, my presentation. _My _presentation. NOT Riku's!

And so, I continued to sit there, completely baffled, pissed off, etceteras. I was shocked that PX was actually changing the menu, but definitely wasn't surprised that it was Riku who did the job. I thought about his reasonings; Why would Riku even bother with the menu? Did he plan on buying from the caf? Or does he just enjoy getting his ass kissed?

I'm betting on option three.

I peered up, catching a glance of Riku's smiling face as people verbally massaged his feet and fed him grapes.

_Definitely _option three.

"Okay everybody, quiet down!" Tifa finally announced. It took a few minutes, but eventually the classroom did quiet down and returned to their original seating positions. I was expecting her to look to me and tell me to continue with my presentation, but instead... Her eyes fell upon Riku. And right then, I could just _tell... _Tifa was just as smitten as the rest of them. "Thats a very impressive announcement you had there, Riku!" She complimented.

"Ohh, it was nothing." He said modestly. I rolled my eyes.

"It was definitely something." The teacher grinned brightly. "I bet you all are really pleased about this, I know how the students hate the cafeteria food..."

"Yeah yo!" Seifer shouted out. "I'm siked, straight up!"

Small amounts of chatted ensued but Tifa didn't let it go far. "So tell us Riku, how did you do it?"

And this is when things started to get a bit more interesting.

"Well Ms. Lockhart, all it took was a little motivation." A sly, almost evil grin slowly formed upon his lips. "And today at lunch, I found that motivation." Suddenly- And I definitely was not expecting this- His eyes landed DIRECTLY on mine. "Everybody, it's all thanks to Xion!"

Everyone looked at me, their expressions puzzled and I was instantly embarrassed. My face flushed, and I angrily stared at Riku. His smug grin never left his face as he said "Xion never gets the proper nutrition she needs to live a healthy lifestyle. And Xion, I hope you don't mind me sharing that all you eat for lunch is a measly bag of chips! Now I'm telling you, after years of working with health and fitness I can assure you, that is certainly unhealthy."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Not that Riku even gave me enough time to think about what the fuck he was babbling about before he continued...

"So of course, I don't want to just sit there and watch a _nice girl_ like her"- what - "kill herself with junk food. She told me herself that if the cafeteria sold good food, she would actually eat at lunch. So I kept on thinking about it more and more, and I realized that there's no way Xion is the only kid at this school who doesn't eat from the caf. And so, I went to talk to Xemnas about it and he was all for listening to my ideas. Soon enough, you can all be eating healthy _and _delicious food!"

After his little presidential speech was over, I think I started to notice the piece of me that was dying with every word he sputtered. And I couldn't stop thinking _how dare he embarrass me like that! _Not only did he share my poor eating habits with the entire class, he called me _nice _when I'm obviously not and... Okay I'll stop there.

The anger was taking over. It wasn't that big of a deal- Really, it wasn't, but for some reason at the very moment my blood just boiled on high. I was totally zoned out with fury, tempted to stand up right there and give that smug ass kisser a piece of my mind, but you know what I did instead? I simply put my headphones in and left earth for the rest of the period. It was possibly one of the most mature decisions I had ever made, but it felt so wrong. I wanted to yell at him. I wanted to _scream _at him.

But I never did.

* * *

So, it was official; Of all the things in the world that could be made official, this was definitely the most officially official thing to ever be made official in the official history of the official WORLD.

What is this intensely official thing I might be ranting about, you may be wondering? Why it's Riku, of course. Riku and all of his annoying-ness. I swear on my life, he is OFFICIALLY the most annoying human being to ever live. Officially.

I was so angry with him. I hated having unwanted attention thrown on me, and I was already in a sour enough mood... _Stupid Riku, stupid Xemnas, stupid drama... Stupid EVERYTHING! _

At that point, it seemed as though everything was going wrong. Everything just made me angrier and angrier, to the point where I actually faked sick just to go back to my dorm room. I needed peace. I needed to be somewhere I KNEW Riku wasn't going to bother me. I just needed to forget.

So I did. I went to my room, and you know what I did? I shoved in my headphones and simply fell asleep.

And do I even have to say where Riku invaded next?

* * *

**Author's note: **Take a guess, take a guess... :) Haha. So SO sorry for the late update, writer's block is a hideous thing which unfortunately, I often find myself cursed with. But I managed to squeeze this chapter out so I hope you like it :) and I'll update as soon as possible, likely within a months time.

**REVIEW PLEASE! **I lose all motivation without them:)


	7. Really?

**I AM GOING TO FUCKING KILL THIS EDITING PROGRAM. **

**.:E.x:c.h:a.n:g.e:d:.**

**00000000**

_Chapter eight; __**Officially Official**_

_**0000000000**_

**- Xion . Riku -**

**00000000000**

Something about the lighting in the room was very... Off. I found myself in a room that appeared to be the basement of the house I grew up in, before my horrible 'mother' sent me to this hell. I was looking around the room- I didn't know what I was looking for until I found it, of course.

Or should I say, I found _him._

I recognized everything from the pink insellation stuffed behind the ricked planks of wood on the walls straight down to the cod concrete floor that had always tinged my feet strangely. It felt exactly the same as it did before.

I aimlessly wandered into the next room, where the scene before me had changed dramatically. I had seemingly left the dull room, and as I exited, an amusment park unfolded before my very eyes; The night sky was darker than black, and the stars brighter than, well... Stars. There were roller coasters and tents, ride upon ride... And I instantly felt a pang of joy. Of course, I still felt incomplete. I had to find what I was looking for. I _needed _to.

So I wandered, completely ignoring all of the sights that surrounded my vision. Soon enough, I stumbled upon a large purple and green striped circus tent. Without thinking, I entered, and inside was easily what I would call a very cliche circus arrangement. There were a few clowns; One of them ballancing on a giant purple ball, and one of them taming a lion. There was a bearded lady pushing a baby carriage and even a man on stilts And in the middle of all of this going on, I noticed a man.

He was wearing an all baby blue suit with a top hat to match. And as I walked towards him, my eyes fixated on my destination, I began to recognize his face.

The long, gray hair that shone silver... The aquamarine eyes... The evil, yet oddly attractive grin...

It was Riku.

His face was painted entirely white, with a red stripe painted down each cheek from his eye, which was also decorated in some sort of sparkley makeup. And when he saw me, he smirked.

"Ah, Xion, you've arrived!" He said jubilantly, his arms outstreched as if to give me a hug. Suddenly, I noticed that I was no longer in the same attire I was previously wearing. I was wearing a sparkling gold dress, red bunny slippers and some sort of funky bonnet.

"The fuck?" I asked out loud, even in a dream being my natural self.

"We've all been waiting for you, Xion." Said Riku, before standing up and clapping his hands ridiculously loud. Everybody snapped to attention. "Listen up, Carnies! Our main event has finally arrived!"

_Main event? _I wondered to myself, confused.

"Lets get this show on the road!"

All of the ... interesting carnies cheered, and suddenly the tent's bleachers were flooded with people.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," Riku accounced, his voice strong and proud as always, "we welcome you to the most amazing, most exhilarating, most fantastical circus in the entire universe. I am proud to present, Riku's House of Madness!" The crowd went wild. I stood there, forever baffled. "For our main event, we have the wonderful tightrope walking Xion! Give it up!"

The spotlight fell upon me and I instantly had no idea what was going on. And before I even knew it, I was way, way, way up high, higher than what would be considered 'normal' for a circus (apparently the tent had grown) and Riku was up there with me.

"The whole crowd is watching, Xion." He said, his eyes boring intently into mine. "Don't fuck up."

I gulped, looking forward at the very thin rope that would be my path. _This is a dream, Xion. _I told myself, my critical lucid dreaming skills coming into play. And so, I walked forward, swallowing any fear I was feeling.

I stood on the rope.

Nothing happened.

I took a step forward.

... Nothing happened.

And so, I smiled, thinking _hey, this isn't so hard!_

Most definitely a jynx. One more step, and I had tripped, plumeting to what felt like was my death, and instantly everything went black.

00000000000000000

I shot upright in my bed, completely startled. It took me a moment to process what had just happened.

"What a weird fucking dream." I thought aloud, my expression quizzical. I recalled it; Every moment of it, down to the very last second where I believed for a second that I was actually going to _die._

And then I remembered _why _I was supposedly going to die.

"... Riku..." I said grudgingly, cursing his name to the very pits of hell.

I had spent the rest of the day doing homework and a bit of art in my room. It was around 6 o'clock, and I thought it was weird because Kairi and Namine weren't back yet. I assumed they'd gone out for dinner.

As I lay on my bed, math textbook and papers sprawled in front of me, I felt my tummy growl. I laughed to myself. "I guess I am a lil hungry." I said aloud, standing to my feet. I decided that some dinner wouldn't be so bad. I thought for a moment, before grinning. "Junk food."

000000000000000000

I had tried to contact Roxas and Axel, but they weren't answering, for whatever reason. This annoyed me; I hated going out alone. But alas, it had to be done. So I made my way over to the cafeteria, cautious with every step... Why?

Because I wanted to avoid _you know who, _of course.

Much to my thankfulness, I arrived at the cafeteria, eyes untainted from the sight of Riku. This certainly lightened my mood... Until I spotted them.

Probably the first thing I noticed in the caf were none other than my two best friends, plus worst enemy...

(I don't care if I sound over dramatic, I hate that guy!)

The Three Musketeers were sitting at _our _table, enjoying a delightful, elegant dinner for three. I didn't even have time to second thought myself before I had stormed up to them. So much for avoiding Riku, eh?

"What the fuck is this?" The rage inside of me spoke. The three of them all raised their heads, eyes falling upon me in confusion. I glowered angrily, my blood reaching a boil.

"What?" Axel was the first to inquire. I glared at him.

"Why didn't you answer my texts!" I demanded.

"I left my phone in my room..." He answered skeptically. He could tell I was angry. Axel, though a complete baffoon at times, was intelligent enough to know not to fuck with me when I was in one of those moods. "Sorry, Xi."

"Humph." My eyes fell upon Roxas'. He looked semi-frightened. _He should be, _I thought. "What about you? Why didn't _you _text me back?" As fast as a little mouse being chased by a fat persian cat, Roxas whipped his cell phone out of his pocket and tossed it to me.

"Batteries dead." He peeped. I examined the phone, and sure enough he was being truthful. The phone would not turn on. Just to make sure, I checked the back of it as well to see if the battery was even in it, to determine if Roxas and Axel were simply avoiding me. Much to my thanks, that was not the case. However, there was still one problem left...

"You." I shot Riku daggers- Flaming daggers with blades as sharp as exacto-knives. _Oh, if looks could kill..._

"Oh, hey Xion, sup?" Riku inquired casually, oblivious to my evident state of mind. Yeah, he is a fucking idiot.

"Don't 'sup' me." I bitched. "What do you think you're doing?"

His eyes darted from side to side. "Eating dinner...?"

I scoffed and rolled my eyes. "I can see that." I pointed to the chair he was sitting in. "That's _my _seat." I told him, intense sternness lacing my voice.

"Oh!" He abruptly jumped to his feet. "I'm sorry, I didn't think you would be joining us tonight."

"Yeah, well, here I am." I said, instantly sitting my flustered ass in the seat he had previously stolen from me. I was now back in my rightful place. Roxas and Axel looked modestly petrified.

There were many moments of awkward silence, before Axel dared to break it.

"So uh..." He nervously scratched the back of his head. "What's got your knickers so twisted?"

If he had asked this question a few minutes earlier, I probably would have ripped his head off. But by the time he had been brave enough to utter the words, I had calmed down. Kinda.

I merely shrugged.

"Yeah Xion, you seem awfully tense." Riku commented. I chose to ignore this.

"Well you did go home sick today, did you not?" Queried Roxas. I nodded.

"Yep. I had a... Headache."

"That's too bad." Riku said. "Did you take an advil?"

"Naw. I didn't bother."

"But if you have a headache, don't you think you should take some medication?" He suggested. "I bet you'd feel a lot better."

I shook my head. "No thanks."

I wasn't looking at him, but I assumed that Riku's expression had turned puzzled. I didn't care.

000000000000000000

In all honesty, dinner that night had been an awkward one. Not just for me, but for everyone. It was clear that I had incaded their 'guy time' or whatever they wanna call it... Which sucks, because normally, I am 'one of the guys'...

Ah, whatever,

With my belly full of deliciously deep fried mexi-fries, I made my way back to my dorm room on my own. The hallway was quiet... Too quiet, and for whatever reason, it gave me the chills. I sped up. And as soon as I turned the corner...

Again? Really?


	8. Pushing All of the Wrong Buttons

**.:E.x:c.h:a.n:g.e:d:.**

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_Chapter eight; **Pushing All of the Wrong Buttons**_**_

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_**

**- Xion . Riku -**

"Oh hey, Xion!"

I stopped in my tracks immediately at the sight of him.

"Riku?" I inquired, praying that I had taken some sort of hallucinogen without realizing it.

"I was looking for you." He smiled sweetly.

I frowned, and paused for a long moment, before cautiously asking "Why?"

"Well, I found this…" From the pocket of his (likely designer) jeans, he plucked a strange looking object of which I had never seen before. The expression I wore remained puzzled. He held it out to me, and I saw that it was a wooden bracelet that looked like it had been crafted in another country.

"And?" I asked.

"I thought it might be yours."

I raised a sardonic brow. "Why would that be mine?"

"I found it near where we were sitting at dinner time, and I doubt something so girly would belong to Roxas or Axel."

I pretended to be offended, just because I didn't like him. "Oh what, so you're calling me girly?"

He chuckled with good nature. "What, would you rather me call you a boy?"

"I prefer the term 'bro', actually." I stated matter-of-factly, before raising my nose to him. "It's not mine, Riku." This was my way of telling him to fuck off. Apparently, he didn't get it.

"Oh, really?" He frowned. "Well, do you want it?"

I stared at him, cautiously squinting my eyes, before once again observing the odd piece of jewellery. The beans were wooden and were all encrypted with a different, trippy looking pattern. It definitely didn't look like something I would find at the mall. So, I shrugged, and accepted it.

"Sure." I said, taking it from him. "Um, thanks."

"Hey, no problem." He grinned brightly. "It's not like I'd have anything to do with it!"

I laughed a bit. Awkwardly, of course. "Yeaaah…"

I wanted the conversation to end so I could continue on my merry way to my room, but nope. As always, Riku had something to say.

"Sooo, what's up?"

"Nothing… Was just on my way back to my room."

"That's cool…" There was a moment of silence. "Okay, look. I'll be blunt…" My ears perked to attention. "I knew that bracelet didn't belong to you."

"Huh?" I twisted my expression. "Then why…"

"Let me finish." He cut me off, only receiving a moderate glare. "I feel like you and I got off on the wrong foot."

_Oh, this should be interesting._

"I feel like you might not like me very much."

I crossed my arms over my chest, rested my weight on one leg, and raised an eyebrow. "Gee, ya think?"

"That's what I thought… Well, I wanted to ask if you maybe wanted to hang out some time…?"

I chuckled. Seriously? "You're… Really weird." I stated. "Asking someone to hang out because they _don't _like you?"

He nodded. "Well, yeah! Because I want a chance to become friends with you. Roxas and Axel told me today that they really like me, and want me to stick around the group"—what—"so naturally, being the new kid I said yes… But there was one problem."

"Me." I said. "Sorry for getting in the way of your stealing my friends."

"What? No no no, that's not what I'm trying to do at all, Xion…" He tried to reason with me, but, well… "I just want us to be friends, because it sucks to hang around people knowing that one of them doesn't like you."

"Why do you care?"

"I don't know. I guess I just like to be, well, _liked."_

I sighed. "Look Riku, I'll give you a little life lesson here. Not _everybody _you meet is going to like you. You can't just force me to like you. If that's your logic then it definitely isn't going to happen."

"I know that." He snorted. "It's just the fact that you will be in my friend group that makes me want to really test out if we can be friends. I mean, I like _you… _Just, you don't like me."

"This conversation is over." I suddenly blurted out without even thinking. I pushed my way past him and continued down the hall, but I should have known that he would simply follow me.

"Just wait a second." He practically pleaded. "Can't you just hear me out?"

"Preeeetty sure I've heard enough."

"Just hang out with me."

"No."

"We can go to the mall."

"Not happening."

"The arcade?"

"No!"

"Okay… The coffee shop?"

"NO!"

"The cafeteria?"

"No!"

We stopped outside of my door, and I faced him with an annoyed expression.

"Okay well, can I come in?"

"Absolutely not!" I exclaimed, appalled he would even ask. He pouted and for some reason I thought it was cute. That thought was quickly exterminated.

"Just give me one hour. One hour out of your time, and if by the end of it you still hate me, then I'll leave you alone forever."

"Hmm, that last part does sound nice…" I pondered. "But no. It's not happening. Sorry bud."

"Why?"

"What do you mean _why?" _I sneered, crinkling my nose. By this point, he was _really _pissing me off, if you couldn't already tell.

"Why don't you want to hang out so… Violently?"

"Pfft, violently? Trust me, I'm not being violent. You'll know when I am."

"I meant that figuratively."

"See? See that right there?" I roughly poked him in the chest and got a little too close to his face, but I was angry so I didn't really notice (but I did notice his cheeks go red). "_That _is why I don't like you, Riku. You're a smart ass."—poke—"You're cocky as hell."—poke—"And you're such a freakin' _browner _that it makes me want to gauge my eyes out with a goddamn spoon!" I threw my arms up in exasperation and backed away from him. "Ugh! And what pisses me off the most, is that you _don't see it! _You think you're so friggin' great! Yeah well, hate to break it to ya, _bro, _but you're _not _all that special. NEWS FLASH, I know."

Riku's face fell flat and I could tell that he didn't know what to say. He kind of just… Stared at me. My rant was not yet over.

"You come in out of freakin' no where with this whole 'oou check me out, I'm a hot beach boy with long luscious hair, check me out!' attitude and invade my school, my friends, and now you're invading my _personal fucking space. _Just a _friendly warning, _I _highly _suggest that you step out of the bubble. Like, now."

And with that I was done. I could feel a light breeze of relief flow through my veins knowing that I had told Riku how I really feel about his arrogant ass. But the next thing he said was really… I don't even have a word for it. After everything I had said, all of the insults, you know what he asked?"

He threw on this cocky expression where his eyebrows raised and his eyes squinted, and he flashed a grin that could only show off his twinkling white teeth. "You think I'm hot?" He queried, and my jaw dropped.

"Really." I said. "That's really all you have to say? Wow. Woooow. Wow. Okay, I gotta go before you give me a stroke." And with that I opened my door and quickly slammed it shut. I pressed my back against it and huffed. _What the fuck was that? _I asked myself, still processing the interesting conversation Riku and I had just had. I was alone in silence for a few moments before I heard from the other side of the door:

"I'll pick you up at your locker after school, have a nice night!" and I think upon those words, a part of me may have died, somewhere deep inside.

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Author's note: Hey everyone, thanks for reading and reviewing! I'll try to update as soon as I can.

Review please!


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